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Glenn Miller to be inducted into Colorado Music Hall of Fame

Boulder's CU campus site of April ceremony

By By Quentin Young

Daily Camera staff writer

Posted:
01/26/2016 06:55:01 PM MST

The Glenn Miller Orchestra performs at Keith Bath's barn southeast of Fort Morgan during the 2014 Glenn Miller SwingFest. The band will perform during the April 16 induction of Miller into the Colorado Music Hall of Fame (Fort Morgan Times file photo)

Glenn Miller was a musician, arranger, composer, and bandleader in the swing era. He was one of the best-selling recording artists from 1939 to 1943, leading one of the best known big bands, the Glenn Miller Orchestra. He graduated from Fort Morgan High School, and that is where it is said he found his passion for music. (Fort Morgan Museum Collection/ Courtesy photo)

When Glenn Miller's "Chattanooga Choo Choo" -- the jaunty big-band number famous for its onomatopoeias -- sold more than 1.2 million copies in 1942, his record company, RCA Victor, sprayed a copy gold as a publicity stunt. It was probably the first gold record.

A graduate of Fort Morgan High School who came to Boulder in 1923 as a student at the University of Colorado, Miller by the 1940s was one of America's most famous performers, and hits like "In the Mood" and "Moonlight Serenade" have ensured the band leader and trombonist a lasting place in the country's musical culture.

"Glenn, worldwide, is maybe the dean of all touring orchestras in the history of music," said Chuck Morris, a Colorado-based concert promoter who has worked with U2 and the Eagles and is chairman of the Colorado Music Hall of Fame's Board of Directors. He added that Miller, with the exception perhaps of John Denver, is the most famous musician ever to come out of Colorado.

That's why Miller is on the next Colorado Music Hall of Fame's inductee list.

An induction ceremony is planned is for 7 p.m. on April 16, in CU-Boulder's Glenn Miller Ballroom. The concert will include a performance by the Glenn Miller Orchestra and Denver's Lannie Garrett, who will also be inducted into the hall of fame during the event, which is produced by AEG Live and the CU Program Council. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday at axs.com.

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The hall of fame dubbed the slate of inductees "20th Century Pioneers." Besides Miller and Garrett, it includes Paul Whiteman, Max Morath, Billy Murray and Elizabeth Spencer — now-obscure but once-influential artists.

"This induction, more than all others, is an exercise in education," said Phil Lobel, a member of the hall's board of directors.

This image by Dan Bridy of Glenn Miller as a Fort Morgan High School football star is among those of notable local people featured in the opening exhibit in the West Gallery at Fort Morgan Museum. This print of that image was sold at the 2014 Fort Morgan Heritage Foundation auction. (Jenni Grubbs / Fort Morgan Times)

Five previous rounds of inductees at the hall, which launched in 2011, featured artists who were most active in the 1960s and '70s, such as John Denver, the Astronauts, Judy Collins, Poco and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.

Garrett, the namesake of Lannie's Clocktower Cabaret, which she co-owns in downtown Denver, is a multi-talented performer who counts singing, acting and comedy among her talents.

"She has had a 30-plus-year amazing career," Morris said. "She's sort of the Bette Midler of Colorado."

Morris said he expects the set of inductees from the state's deep history to bring a new audience to the hall of fame. And he anticipates that newer artists, such as Big Head Todd and the Monsters, the Fray, the String Cheese Incident, and Yonder Mountain String Band might be up for consideration in coming years.

"We really started with some older acts," Morris said, "But there will be more contemporary stuff as we do more inductions."

In 1942, during World War II and at the height of his fame, Glenn Miller enlisted in the U.S. Army and led the Army Air Force Band. On Dec. 15, 1944, he boarded a plane in England and took off for liberated Paris to prepare for a series of concerts in the city. His plane was never heard from again.

Glenn Wolfe, a nephew of Miller who was born in 1945 and grew up in Greeley, said his family used the term "lost" to describe what happened to his uncle.

"There was never any resolution to the story of his disappearance," said Wolfe, who today lives outside Lyons, Ore. "There wasn't an acknowledgment in the early days that he indeed was dead."

Miller's music played a big role in his childhood.

"It was the music of our household, pretty much," Wolfe said. "His records were constantly playing."

He hopes Miller's induction into the CMHOF will help sustain his memory.

"Glenn and his music made an enormous contribution to American culture mid-century at a very critical time in history, but time erases that kind of memory pretty quickly," Wolfe said. "I don't even mention anymore I'm Glenn Miller's nephew, because I run the risk of having to explain who he was."

Wolfe plans to attend the induction ceremony in April, and he also expects his older brother, Laury Wolfe, who lives in Boulder, to attend.

The CMHOF last year moved into a new location, the Trading Post, at Red Rocks Amphitheatre. It's open every day except Thanksgiving and Christmas from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., from November through March, and from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., April through October.

Here's a look at the other inductees:

Paul Whiteman: The band leader and composer was born in Denver in 1890 and performed on radio and in movies. He was often called "the King of Jazz."

Max Morath: Was born in Colorado Springs and graduated from Colorado College, had a TV show, "The Ragtime Era," in the 1960s and was known as "Mr. Ragtime."

Billy Murray: Was born in 1877 and spent most of his early years in Denver. Known as "the Denver Nightingale," released first Edison cylinder recordings in 1903 and "became one of the most popular artists in the U.S."

Elizabeth Spencer: Her stepfather was Col. William Gilpin, the first governor of the Colorado territory. She became an accomplished singer and actor, was Thomas Edison's most prolific vocalist between 1910-1916 and did radio work in the 1920s.

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